Amazon launches its Echo devices and Alexa in Japan

Amazon announced its intentions to launch the Echo down under during its big AWS Re:Invent show back in November.

Amazon has continued its hardware push into Asia after it launched the Echo, Echo Plus, and Echo Dot in Japan today.

Alongside the hardware, it is also making its Alexa voice assistant available in the country. That means that developers will gain access to Alexa Skills -- which has support for Japanese -- while consumers will also be able to use Alexa alongside their hardware and other apps and services from Amazon, too. Amazon said it will offer Alexa voice search for Japan soon.

Amazon doesn't dominate Japan like the U.S. and parts of Europe since local player Rakuten is the nation's top e-commerce firm -- it is also present in financial services and other areas -- but that hasn't stopped it from showing serious ambition. Amazon has offered ebooks in Japan since 2010, and today it has a full suit of Prime services that includes same day deliveries for customers in Japan.

Adding these new devices and Alexa might help boost Amazon's presence in Japan but it is unlikely to topple Rakuten. That said, the Japanese market is the third largest global economy which makes even grabbing a small slice of the pie potentially lucrative.